UN Reports Ebola Cases in West Africa Fall to Lowest Levels in Months

MOSCOW, January 15 (Sputnik) — New Ebola cases in all the three West African countries affected by Ebola have declined to their lowest weekly total in recent months, the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) said in a report Thursday.

"Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone have recorded their lowest weekly number of new cases for months," the report published on the United Nation's website said.

According to the report, Guinea saw its lowest number of weekly new cases since August 17, 2014, while no new confirmed cases have been reported in Liberia for the last two days of the week ending January 11. Sierra Leone has also seen a decline in case incidences in the past two weeks, with its lowest weekly total since August 31, 2014.

Meanwhile, Sierra Leone's President Emest Koroma this week predicted that his country would have zero Ebola cases by May.

UNMEER reported tensions in several villages in Guinea, making the areas inaccessible by the country's "Zero Ebola in 60 Days" evaluation team, launched last week to monitor response efforts. On January 10, two police officers accused of spreading Ebola were lynched in Guinea. While a Red Cross worker was assaulted several days before.

Since the Ebola outbreak began in late 2013 in Guinea, a total of over 20,000 probable, suspected and confirmed cases have been reported in the three countries. Among the reported cases, more than 8,000 people have died from the deadly virus.